Aug 19, 2008 4:45 pm US/Mountain
College Presidents Want Drinking Age Lowered To 18
As Many As 100 University Presidents Want The Issue Discussed; Parents, Students Decidedly Split On The Idea
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
Should the legal drinking age be lowered from 21 to 18?
One hundred university presidents –- from some of the nation's best known colleges –- are trying to provoke a national debate, CBS station WCBS-TV in New York reports.
A driver with a history of driving under the influence cost Carole Sears her husband of 33 years. Sears is the president of the Westchester chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
"For absolutely no reason at all, no reason," Sears said. "We were just driving along. My husband was gone.
"It happened in just one second."
Sears is totally opposed to a move to reopen the debate about lowering the legal drinking age to 18.
"Those are the years where kids still are kids. You want to say they're adults, but they don't behave as adults when it comes to drinking," Sears said.
Manhattanville College President Richard Berman said he think the drinking age debate should be re-opened.
"There's a lot of things that I think make the debate timely," Berman said. "Whether it's our kids giving their lives at 18 to save this country, I think the issues about voting and responsibility to vote."
Berman said society needs to re-evaluate the issue.
"I'm trying to understand if it should be reduced at all, should it be reduced in certain circumstances at certain locations," Berman said.
Many college students welcome the debate.
"Colleges already have kids drinking that are 18, 19, 20, so why not make it legal?" college senior Frank Furbacher said.
"I think there are certain circumstances where people are responsible at 18 to drink," added senior Joshua Zaloga. "[There are] other circumstances where there aren't people responsible."
Others have mixed reactions.
"I don't think 18-year-olds of today are responsible," said Michelle Potkin of Harrison.
"I don't think it will make any difference because if the kids want to drink at age of 18 they'll drink anyway," said Suad Rizvanbegovic of Larchmont.
"I think people should consider lowering the drinking age and increase the driving age," added Rich Stephenson of Larchmont.
The United States has the highest drinking age in the world, a title shared with Indonesia and Mongolia. In some other countries it's as low as 16.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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